Thomas Story & Son LLC Reduces Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Thomas Story & Son LLC lowered its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 89,479 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 575 shares during the period. Williams-Sonoma makes up approximately 6.9% of Thomas Story & Son LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Thomas Story & Son LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $16,570,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth approximately $238,000. Martin Capital Advisors LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Martin Capital Advisors LLP now owns 24,762 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,585,000 after buying an additional 970 shares during the period. Focused Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $222,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Tobam purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at $55,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total transaction of $560,552.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total transaction of $5,219,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 990,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 88,160 shares of company stock valued at $15,129,352. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WSM. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $172.34.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $207.26 on Monday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $103.50 and a 12-month high of $219.98. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $196.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $161.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.97%.

Williams-Sonoma Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand.